Paul George #13 of the Oklahoma City Thunder brings the ball up court as Joe Ingles #2 of the Utah Jazz applies pressure during game 5 of the Western Conference playoffs at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on April 25, 2018 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Photo by J Pat Carter/Getty Images)

Biggest Winners and Losers of NBA Free Agency So Far

Is OKC keeping Paul George a bigger deal than LeBron James going to LA?

8 months ago

The biggest winner of NBA free agency thus far is … the Oklahoma City Thunder?

That’s the case being made by ESPN’s Zach Lowe, who argues that the Thunder retaining Paul George to play alongside Russell Westbrook for years to come is actually a bigger coup than the Lakers luring LeBron James away from Cleveland.

While George and Westbrook alone aren’t enough to lift the Thunder into the same stratosphere as the Warriors, those two players, along with Andre Roberson, Steven Adams, and a potential replacement for soon-to-depart Carmelo Anthony, will certainly make OKC competitive in the West.

As for James and the Lakers, the signings of Rajon Rondo and Lance Stephenson have the potential to be a boom—or a bust. Both players are mercurial and are not always the best teammates when things aren’t going well. That said, if the team is winning they should be fine and bringing in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope also seems like a good fit.

By bringing in DeMarcus Cousins, the Warriors also got better as did the Indiana Pacers by bringing in Tyreke Evans, Doug McDermott, and Kyle O’Quinn.

The Pacers are the exception, not the rule, however, as nearly the entire Eastern Conference is a free agency loser thus far.